Outsourcing
Computerworld, 2/3/03: Your Outsourced Future
By MARYFRAN JOHNSON
Reader reaction was swift and scornful last week after we ran a story predicting that 35% to 45% of existing IT jobs in the U.S. and Canada will be outsourced, shifted to contractors or moved offshore within the next two years. So many jobs? So soon? No way. Headline-grabbing nonsense, this was.
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Gartner, 2/3/03: Management Update: Application Outsourcing Trends for 2003 and 2004
The application outsourcing market now includes a broad range of services. Understanding key trends and drivers shaping the market will help enterprises to better plan, implement and refine their sourcing strategies.
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Gartner, 2/4/03: Why Asia/Pacific Enterprises Outsource, and Why They Don’t
Asia/Pacific enterprises generally have sound business-driven reasons for outsourcing when they do. But those that do not use outsourcing also offer cogent reasons that service providers must address.
This report highlights the wide variation in user perceptions and requirements in the region to assist service providers in targeting their offerings more effectively in the coming year. It is based on an Asia/Pacific-wide survey of 859 IT services decision makers in 11 countries/regions, covering all industries and a broad range of company sizes. The report is part of a series dealing with various aspects of user activities, perceptions and plans with respect to outsourcing.
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Business Process Outsourcing
Gartner, 1/30/03: Business Process Outsourcing Popularity Grows in SMB
Market (Executive Summary)
BPO has taken hold among SMBs, a market that Gartner Dataquest estimates was worth nearly $15 billion in the United States in 2002 alone. Despite the general perception that strategic and tactical BPO are chiefly the domain of large, multinational organizations, an increasing number of SMBs are adopting it, especially for back-office enterprise services such as HR. This document provides vendors with an analysis of SMB user wants and needs pertaining to BPO services adoption in 2003. Findings of a UserWants and Needs survey in North America are presented, specifically, how SMBs use BPO, where their planned investments are in the coming 24 months, how they select BPO vendors, and their attitudes toward relationship management and contract engagement styles. The document is intended for use by BPO services vendors targeting the North American SMB market.
Back-office enterprise services are by far the most popular processes to outsource among Gartner Dataquest's North American respondents and are a strong reflection of their stated desire to focus on their perceived core competencies. HR outsourcing tops the list for present or planned activity for SMBs. Finance and accounting services are either outsourced or planned for outsourcing by 48 percent of small business respondents, compared with only 25 percent of midsize businesses. These findings are from Gartner Dataquest's survey of 150 respondents identified in the third quarter of 2002 as being involved in evaluating, planning or deciding whether to outsource one or more business processes. Among this set of respondents, 73 percent were SMBs. This report reflects the attitudes, behaviors and priorities related to these 110 SMBs.
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Giga, 2/4/03: Outsourcing in Haste Produces Disappointing Results
Richard Peynot
The board of our company has hired a restructuring company in order to make significant cost reductions, and they propose to outsource the IT department. What are the common risks of such decisions?
Companies with financial difficulties often hire restructuring offices or management consultants. Among their recommendations to save money, these vendors commonly suggest outsourcing the IT department. Managers are seduced by the promise of IT budget reductions of 20 percent to 40 percent. However, such measures should not be taken on to the extent suggested by press reports or as claimed by consultants. The added value of outsourcing is not systematic and companies should carefully consider the specific situation of the company first. Giga urges companies to build a realistic business case demonstrating the benefits of outsourcing and then manage the transition with the supplier as a project covering all aspects — organizational, cultural and operational. If not, companies may face disappointing results.
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Giga, 2/4/03: Alternatives to ‘Big Bang’ Outsourcing
Richard Peynot
Because our company is in a hurry to restructure and reduce operational costs, its action plan includes outsourcing IT — completely and rapidly. Are there better approaches to reduce risks?
Companies that decide to outsource all or a large part of their IT department should be aware of the risks. The decision to outsource completely often comes from urgent plans to restructure the company or put it back on its feet. Although outsourcing may save money and improve the IT service, as with most large projects, a step-by-step approach is recommended, including result measurement after each step and experience accumulation.
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Giga, 2/4/03: Outsourcing in Europe: European Companies Are Still Reserved
Richard Peynot
Many European companies remain very reserved and suspicious about outsourcing. What are the main causes? Are they justified?
While desktop outsourcing is increasingly accepted in Europe, many companies remain very reserved and suspicious about outsourcing enterprise applications (with the exception of some companies in the United Kingdom). The primary cause of that reserve is the significance of the changes that must be made — financial, technical or related to security — that can serve as an argument against outsourcing. Too often, fears around change discourages managers when it comes to ASPs or MSPs. Giga urges managers to build a business case that highlights the benefits and challenges of outsourcing, and evaluate the required effort for communication, business process re-engineering and change management.
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Helpdesk
Giga, 2/4/03: Remedy Rides Again: BMC Grants Division Freedom in Product Strategy and Vision
John Ragsdale
What impact has the BMC acquisition of Remedy had on product strategy?
The Remedy team has been given the go ahead to plan its own strategic direction and product vision, allowing it to regain the market visibility lost during the 18 months under Peregrine. Existing Remedy customers can rest assured that the existing AR System platform and packaged solutions will continue to be supported and enhanced, and companies evaluating Remedy for a help desk or customer service purchases can proceed with no risk of existing products being retired or dramatically altered due to new ownership.
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Technology Economy
News.Com, 2/7/03: Dell COO sees tough year ahead
Dell Computer's chief operating officer says that corporate tech spending will be soft this year due to the weak economy and concerns about a potential U.S. war with Iraq.
"What we have felt all along is that much like 2002, 2003 will be a fairly difficult year due to the economy more than anything else,'' Kevin Rollins told Reuters. "The overhang with the potential war makes people skittish and nervous."
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EDS
News.Com, 2/7/03: EDS profit falls on weak IT spending
By Ed Frauenheim
Computer services giant Electronic Data Systems on Thursday reported lower fourth-quarter revenue and earnings and offered a cautious outlook for the coming year.
The Plano, Texas-based company reported a fourth-quarter net income of $360 million, or 75 cents per share, compared with a net income of $405 million, or 82 cents per share, during the same period of 2001. The results include a loss of six cents per share stemming from EDS' investment related to aircraft leases with United Airlines, as well as a gain of six cents from a reversal of provisions related to the company's business with WorldCom.
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Healthcare
The Wall Street Journal, 2/7/03: Health Confab Raises Question: Will the Industry Get Wired?
Is this the year that health care gets wired?
That's the hope, as the annual conference of the Health Care Information and Management Systems Society kicks off this weekend in San Diego. With patient safety, medical error and electronic transmission of patient data high on most hospitals' agenda, the confab -- attracting nearly 20,000 attendees -- should be a tech seller's market.
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How To Use a Flat-Bed Scanner to Digitize LPs
Digital Needle - A Virtual Gramophone
Remember those flat round things you may have found lying around the house. Those that never really worked well as flying saucers? Well, the other day I happened to have a good look at one through a magnifying glass. I was able to discern something waveform'esqe in the shape of the grooves. I thought, "groovy, there must be a way to extract something sensible off of that" (actual thought quoted). At which point I came up with some great reasons to have a go:
A) These round objects could have some archeological value.
B) I could waste some time.
Happily convinced by these, I tried to recall an old legend I once heard concerning these objects. This legend being of technological nature, entailed a diamond needle that would vibrate when placed atop the revolving flat things, these vibrations, when amplified would produce music.
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